reloading info

guys and girls please read and understand what im about to tell you.i reload and from time to time go to the reloading forum,i have been reloading for about 35 years or so and just maybe i can keep you and yours from being hurt.i see a number of people asking for info on different loads as far as bullit weight,and charge amounts for powder................never,never load a charge from info from someone else.if you cant verify it in writing do not do it..............the life you save ,may be your own.nuff said old semperfi

Rhuga, reloading in not difficult but does require care and precision. I have found it an interesting and enjoyable addition to the shooting hobby. As Old Semperfi is advising use only the published data when reloading. Pick up one of the reloading manuals such as Hornady, Speer, Lymand or Lee and read through it. You find that anyone can become a safe reloader. Like Old Semperfi I have been doing it for over 30 years.

I've been at for even longer, but I've just started reloading for a new AR-15. Sorting thru my range brass, I see a LOT of cases that have pierced primers. This means that someone loaded them to pressure that was far beyond safe. Others are much too hard to resize, because the cases have been "blown out" in a stretched chamber. This stuff leads to blown up rifles, which are well known for causing serious injury and death.
It's OK, and even "normal" to go looking for load data, but it's of utmost importance that you confirm that data from a known source, as noted above.
In .223 especially, I see a lot of people trying to develop loads for bolt action rifles that far exceed the safe limits of semi-autos. ALWAYS check.

folks submit loads and until a few years ago the folks who run it in a few states broke em up and tested em and then listed them

thats only 1 state now sadly ,

i have submitted a lot , maybe 50 approved ? more ? i'd have to look

these loads all come from approved , and also why when someone asks me back about a newer projectile or powder i cant say , i have range info but it aint listed and we are often a couple years behind products here

Rhuga, reloading in not difficult but does require care and precision. I have found it an interesting and enjoyable addition to the shooting hobby. As Old Semperfi is advising use only the published data when reloading. Pick up one of the reloading manuals such as Hornady, Speer, Lymand or Lee and read through it. You find that anyone can become a safe reloader. Like Old Semperfi I have been doing it for over 30 years.

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Another long time reloader here, I've been at it for over 40 years. And I agree with everthing posted on this one. As stated, reloading isn't very hard, if I can do it anybody can! Please, only use those loads that are safe, as printed in your reloading manual. Never exceed max loads! Never experiment!

Keep yer loading manuals up to date...Powder formulas change over the years...Had a fellow load up some .300WinMag from a manual about 20 years old...Checking an up to date manual, he was 3 grains over maximum using the same powder and bullet...Could have been interesting had he touched one off..

It depends on which cartridges you're loading and how you value your time. I count my time as free because I reload as a hobby. (When I figure in how much it costs to go to a baseball game, I don't also add the $100 that I could have made had I been working instead, but I've seen people do that many times with reloading.)

Generally, buying the components to assemble yourself will cost between 40% and 75% the cost of buying comparable factory ammunition.

Beginners benefit from starting with low-mid range plinking ammo - a bit of a safety margin then is 'built-in' to the process as they hone their skills. As regards it being 'rocket surgery' I always refer to this youtube video by the man himself Richard Lee, using his very basic Lee Loader (whack-a-mole)

Yes it can be as complex as the hobbyist chooses to make it, but it really IS this simple to make safe, reliable and accurate ammo. Regardless of it being made on the $30 Lee loader or a $30,000 Camdex machine....a round of ammo only has 4 parts, primer-case-powder-bullet. And regardless of the equipment used, they all combine those 4 components into that which goes bang.

Also the different component manufacturers publish load data on the net which you can add to the data from your reloading manuals.
I figure I can load fifty Nine mm for under $5.00. About the same for .45. .44 and .45Colt for about twice that. Rifle depends on your components theres a wide variation.

Good advice here. Never reload from data you did not see published in a current reloading manual. I'd go one step further - never shoot anyone else's reloads. Had an friend pester me into trying one of his loads in my rifle. Big mistake - lucky I only lost a piece of my rifle and nothing more than that. I won't buy or shoot anyone else's reloads, no matter who they are.

I've also been reloading for more than 40 years. The benefits that I've found are 1.) you can tailor your loads to YOUR rifle or pistol; 2.) you can produce ammo that is no longer readily available like .45/70 M73 and .30 M2 ammo (and some that never were commercially produced like 7.65 French Longe), 3.) you can at least CUT IN-HALF the cost of your ammo, and 4.) reloading is satisfying and enjoyable as a hobby, and finally, 5.) reloading makes shooting more often practical.

Go a step further and cast your own bullets and you can save even more.

Keep yer loading manuals up to date...Powder formulas change over the years...Had a fellow load up some .300WinMag from a manual about 20 years old...Checking an up to date manual, he was 3 grains over maximum using the same powder and bullet...Could have been interesting had he touched one off..

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Duke they did similar here with .303 ammo across the board

most .303 LE's are getting old and a well worn ww1 one may be suffering metal fatigue by now ...